The Gorgon Gas Project - Report Example

Introduction: The Gorgon gas project is based on the Western Australian area known as the Greater Gorgon and is being operated by Chevron Australia, a subsidiary of the reputed international energy company Chevron. The petroleum project entails the development of the gas fields located in the Gorgon area, the construction off an off-shore gas extraction infrastructure as well as a liquefied natural gas plant on Barrow Islands. Currently, Australia is the 6th largest exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the world and this project aided by numerous other similar projects, has the scope to help the country become the largest LNG exporter in the word in a span of ten years. The gas fields which have a lifespan of 60 years, purportedly contain 40 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and it has been forecasted that 15 million tonnes of LNG will be extracted from the area every year. The project has been mainly criticized for the harmful impact that it will have on the eco system of the Barrow Islands. Other critics have raised the issue that the increased Carbon did oxide productions as a result of this venture will have a negative effect on the environment of the area and will effectively harm the natural habitat of that region. Although it will bring the country many economic benefits, most critics are claiming that it will also effectively destroy the ecology of the local area. The main issue that this report aims to analyze is the way that the media has depicted the impact of Gorgon on the environment of the region and how this depiction has affected the public’s opinion of the project. The main question that this analysis seeks to answer is whether the media depiction of Gorgon’s environmental effect has been such that it had lead the public to believe that Chevron Australia is not engaging in adequate sustainability efforts. The reason that this question has been chosen is that Chevron believes in forming lasting relationships with the Australian public and the company understands the importance of forming a positive image upon the minds of the people whose life the company’s many business endeavors touch. Policy makers at Chevron also believe that the answers to this question will provide them with an insight into how they should go about developing their PR strategy and which issues they would need to target most particularly. Research Question: This report aims to analyze the media’s depiction of this issue and to research whether there is any sort of bias in this respect. Another issue that this paper is going to cover the way that this subject has been conveyed to the public and study the tone of positivity or negativity that has been attributed to this project and in the same course, has been communicated to the public. By studying the medias stance on this issue and the way that this subject is handled in publications; most specifically in newspaper articles, this report aims to provide a guidance for Chevron Australia so that it can reform and reassess it’s public relations and communications policy. The report will also help the reputed energy company to develop a countering policy in this regard so that the efforts that it is taking for the preservation of the environment in the area can be communicated to the public in a much better way. Methodology: To analyze the media’s depiction of the environmental concerns surrounding the Gorgon gas project, newspaper articles as well as articles published on internet publications were thoroughly analyzed. Articles that were specifically written on the subject of Gorgon’s effects on the natural habitat of the area were sought. However stories and articles which mentioned the subject in passing have also been covered in this study. Most articles that have discussed the gas project have at least once (more in some instances) commented upon its effect on the natural habitat of the area and on the environment of the region, therefore apart from articles which were specifically based on this subject and which only discussed the environmental side of the project, articles which were mainly concerned with the economic side of the project were also considered. The analysis of the newspaper articles and the internet publications was carried out in a systematic way with emphasis being paid on the positivity or negativity which is expressed in the language being used. Within the articles where the main theme was to discuss the effects of the Gorgon Gas project on the environment of the area, importance was given in analyzing the style of language and the presence of any sort of extreme or overt bias in the regard. Most articles which were not mainly dealing with this issue had only mentioned the projects environmental side in a passing way, but they were analyzed for the way that they made mention of the subject in passing and whether it was in a negative or positive way. The articles which dealt with the sustainability activities being carried out by Chevron Australia were also analyzed in this respect. Within these articles the main focus was on analyzing whether the information was presented in a clear and correct way. The positivity and negativity of the language was also analyzed and so was the way in which these sustainability efforts were presented. The analysis also tried to evaluate whether the major portion of the publications in this regard thought that these efforts that were being carried out by Chevron were enough or not and tried to gauge what discrepancies they thought were present in those efforts. Findings and Analysis : The articles which are mainly concerned with other aspects of the Gorgon project and which mention the project’s impact on the environment, do so in an offhand manner and usually in a neutral tone of language. An article published in the Environmental Leader (2010), mentions Chevrons claims for increased energy and states that the company has claimed an increase of 30% in it’s energy efficiency. The mention of the Gorgon project is made after that and Chevron’s strategy to deal with the Carbon dioxide emissions which will take place as a result of the project are also mentioned correctly and in a positive manner. Most of the articles which dealt with the matter in an offhanded way were mostly neutral.(Environmental Leader, 2010) In an article titled “Gorgon Gas Project: Environmental Vandalism”, the author Naomi Woodley provides readers with a detailed account of how the Gorgon project will effectively destroy the ecology of the Barrow Islands. The article shrugs aside Chevron’s sustainability efforts and states that even though the company is trying to be energy efficient, the fact that the government believes that a project of this scale which will involve injecting 3.5 million tonnes of Carbon dioxide into an underground reservoir can still be carried out without ruining the surrounding areas habitat defies logic. The article mentions that the sustainability efforts will mostly have very little effect on the actual preservation of the environment and found them to be lacking in common sense (Woodley, 2009). Another newspaper analyzing the same situation has done so in a neutral manner and supplied readers with information from which they can form a conclusion the way that thy see fit. This article manages to talk about the discrepancies in the underground Carbon dioxide storage plans that Chevron has and discusses the possibility that a leak might occur. However most of the article is laden with facts and very little discussion or personal opinion is provided on this subject. The article mostly concentrates on providing readers with the opinions of the experts n the scientific field and allows them to form an opinion on their own without engaging in any form of negative language used in providing the facts. (Herbert & Lane, 2009) Almost of all the articles analyzed, very few had outright usage of visible negative language. Very few articles were outright in saying that the sustainability plans will definitely fail and aside of a small number of articles, most were informing the readers with information through which they could themselves deduce opinions. However, even though most newspaper articles are trying to provide readers with adequate information on the subject, there are some which have only tried to piece together negative information which can be used to lead the readers into believing that this project is definitely going to be n environmental hazard. An article titled “FED: Greens slam Garretts decision to approve Gorgon project“ (APP General News Wire, 2009) the author is oriented towards providing readers with facts due to which they are very likely to form a negative opinion about the project. Words such as “nonsense” and “disappointing” have been used in reference to the environmental sustainability efforts being carried out by Chevron and there is a negative tone throughout the article; even while discussing the fact that the company has plans to spend $62.5 million on a Flatback turtle conservation program as well as making plans for conservation efforts to protect animals such as the Hare wallaby, Burrowing Bettong marsupial and the Golden Bandicoot. Although such articles are not large in number, they are still numerous and they piece together negative information about this subject in a way which is highly leading. Although, as mentioned before, there is no outright usage of extremely negative language, but by mentioning largely negative and implicating pieces of information, the article seems to be directly aiming to put the Gorgon gas project in a negative light. The major trend that has been observed in analyzed writings has shown that although almost none of the articles directly pertaining to Gorgon‘s environmental effects have outright approved of the issue. While most have viewed Chevron’s sustainability efforts with disapproval, there have been some that show a level of hope that since the government has approved the project, it will definitely ensure the ecology of the Barrow islands are preserved during the time that Chevron is there (AAP General News Wire, 2009). Most of all such articles cite the opinions of Federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett. By informing the public that the government and the Federal environment ministry will ensure that a constant check is kept on the activities of the company in the region. Although this is not exactly the light in which Chevron will want the public to view its activities, it is still much better than the negativity which has been surrounding this issue. Most articles have also made mention of at least some, if not all the sustainability efforts and the projects which Chevron will sponsor in order to ensure that the island, which has been dubbed as Australia’s Ark, and its ecology is properly protected from prospective harm. Conclusion: The Barrow Islands and its natural ecology which has at least 24 species and sub -species of extinct and endangered animals living in the area, has a significance importance in the ecology of the region. Therefore concern showed by the public and the media is predictable. Most of the articles analyzed, somewhere around 50% of them manage to display facts in a neutral way so that the public can form an informed opinion of their own accord. However, of the readings analyzed, almost 35% were directly or indirectly pointing put that the conservation strategy that was promised by Chevron would very likely prove to be futile and would not be able to keep the ecology of the area from destruction. Most of the concern was directed towards the plans which entail the storage of Carbon dioxide on underground vaults and resultant opinions are that the prospective leakages that could occur would most likely be extremely hazardous to the area’s habitat. The analysis has lead to the conclusion that the way that this issue has been discussed and the way that some articles have depicted Chevron’s planned sustainability efforts, there will be a significant percentage of people in the general public who deem the company’s plans for ensuring the environmental safety, insubstantial. Recommendation: To form an effective public communication strategy, Chevron should focus its attention on improvising ways through which it’s sustainability activities can be effectively communicated to the public. Although concern in the conservation of the area is understandable, Chevron should tackle this issue most steadfastly and improvise communication strategies which inform the public about the sustainability efforts that it was taking up in order to prevent the ecology of the area from being harmed. Another major area of concern is the underground storage of Carbon dioxide, and the company will benefit from raising public awareness about how it plans to keep the utmost surveillance on this aspect of the project. To create a successful public relations and communication strategy, the company will also have to pay attention to providing the public from time to time with accurate and up to date knowledge about its business activities, so that there can be developed a certain level of trust between them. References: FED: Green slams Garrett’s decision to approve Gorgon project. 2009. AAP General News Wire. Sydney. PM defends Gorgon project . ABC Premium News.. Sydney. 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Woodley, N., 2009 .Gorgon gas project environmental vandalism . ABC Premium News. . Sydney. Retrieved form: http://proquest.umi.com.dbgw.lis.curtin.edu.au/pqdweb?RQT=572&VType=PQD&VName=PQD&VInst=PROD&pmid=56335&pcid=48194521&SrchMode=3 on 21st May 2010. Read More